1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to field effect structures. More particularly, the invention relates to field effect structures with enhanced performance.
2. Description of the Related Art
Field effect structures that include field effect devices, such as field effect transistors, are common semiconductor structures. Such field effect structures have been effectively scaled in dimension for several decades to provide sequentially increased performance and functionality of semiconductor circuits.
As semiconductor structure dimensions and semiconductor device dimensions have continued to decrease, several novel approaches have evolved that supplement semiconductor structure dimensional scaling for providing enhanced semiconductor device performance. Included among such novel approaches are: (1) approaches that exploit intrinsically different properties of different materials of composition of field effect devices; as well as (2) approaches that exploit mechanical effects, such as but not limited to mechanical stress effects, within field effect devices.
While such additional novel approaches to field effect device performance enhancement are thus desirable within semiconductor fabrication art, further additional novel approaches to field effect device performance enhancement are nonetheless also still desirable.
Various semiconductor structures having desirable properties, and methods for fabrication thereof, are known in the semiconductor fabrication art.
For example, Liang, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,605,845, teaches a field effect transistor structure with enhanced electrical performance, and a related method for fabricating the field effect transistor structure with the enhanced electrical performance. To effect the enhanced electrical performance, this particular field effect transistor structure includes a source region and a drain region that are asymmetric.
In addition, Wang, et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 6,566,204, teaches a field effect transistor structure having enhanced electrical performance and a method for fabricating the field effect transistor structure having the enhanced electrical performance. To effect the enhanced electrical performance, this particular field effect transistor structure includes a channel region that includes an asymmetric dopant profile.
Semiconductor device performance requirements and semiconductor circuit functionality requirements are certain to continue to increase as semiconductor technology advances. Since such increased performance and functionality requirements may be difficult to fulfill using only semiconductor device and semiconductor structure dimensional scaling, desirable are additional novel approaches that provide for fulfillment of increased semiconductor device performance requirements and semiconductor circuit functionality requirements.